Children of a New Earth (23 page)

For a split second, Amy thought she would agree. It would only be fair. 

“Thanks, but Amy and I have technical stuff to discuss,” Lexa replied. “You know, PVs and EVs and whatnot.”

Amy was glad of the support. She was also relieved not to have to ride with the other boys. That and, well, she couldn’t quite call it jealousy, but she did not want the boys after Lexa, especially not Patrick. Lexa was apparently quite worldly, much more so than Amy. Still, she had no idea what the men of Freedom Ranch could be like. Amy already felt protective toward her.

“You know, it just hit me,” she told Lexa as they drove off. “I never did tell any of the boys about your custom, marriage-wise, that is. I wonder what they will make of it.”

“I thought it was okay for boys, just not for girls?”

“Yes and no. Taking a woman to bed for a fling would be one thing. They’d call that ‘sowing their wild oats.’ Actual marriage with many partners would be another deal altogether. I don’t think they’ll understand that at all.” Amy paused. “Not that I am sure I understand it. How does it work?”

“Well, every family is different. Some have chore lists, and everyone is assigned a turn. Our family is more casual. I am gone so much that they don’t expect me to do much housework . . .”

“I kind of meant,” Amy interrupted “you know, the marriage thing?”

Lexa laughed. “The marriage thing? You mean sex?” Amy blushed and nodded. “That just depends on mood and practicality. Sometimes we swap around, take turns, you know. Other times, we all play together.”

“That’s carnal!” Amy said.

“I know, isn’t it?” Lexa smiled. Seeing Amy’s expression she sobered. “Oh, you meant that in a bad way.”

“What other way could it be taken? It’s sinful, unchristian.”

“Is it?” Lexa asked puzzled. Her sincerity disarmed Amy. “Is that what Christians believe?”

“Yes, hasn’t anyone ever told you that?”

“No,” Lexa answered. “Well, maybe Erin mentioned something in history class. I never paid much attention. I didn’t ever expect to actually meet anyone with all those weird pre-blast ideas. I’m sorry if I have offended you. That’s the last thing I want.”

“It’s okay,” Amy was even more confused. She had spent so long fighting the ranch’s beliefs. Now that she was cast in the role of defender of those same beliefs, she found herself ill equipped to deal with it. At the same time, she was not ready to abandon what she had been told was right for so long.

“So,” Lexa was back to her usual bubbly self. “Who will go for it? Which of the boys will ‘sow their wild oats’ among the sinful pagans?” She giggled.

“Well, I know that Shawn is looking for a woman,” Amy replied, making a sour face.

“Looking for part of a woman anyway.” Lexa grimaced. “I swear that boy never gets his eyes up to face level, if you know what I mean.”

“He doesn’t have anyone at home,” Amy explained. Once again, she felt she had to defend someone she had never defended before. She told Lexa about the numbers at the camp and how no one his age was available or interested.

“That’s sad,” Lexa said. “I hope he does find someone.”

“Find someone willing to marry him and go live in the mountains?”

“Not likely, I am afraid.” Lexa shrugged. “But I am sure he can find company for a night or two. He’s a big strapping lad, if a bit slow on the uptake.”

“If it’s offered, I doubt he’ll stop and question it.” 

“Okay, so what about the others?”

“Well, Kurt won’t. He’s big into religion, he and his whole family. A sin’s a sin to them, no exceptions. Patrick will in a heartbeat, and so will Mark, even though he is married.”

“Okay, but up there, if you’re married, you aren’t supposed to, right? Is there some sort of exception for him?”

“No, he’s just an ass,” Amy replied. “Daniel’s one I am not sure about. Luke will be polite but not interested, mark my words.”

“Damn, he’s cute,” Lexa said. Then her mouth went into an O. “But you two are a thing, right? I’m sorry. I won’t try anything, I promise.”

Amy shrugged and waved off the objection. She had no real fear that either of the two would do anything. She did not know what to say; she didn’t really want Lexa after Luke, but she didn’t want to link herself to him publicly just yet. There’d be plenty of time for that when they got home.

Lexa grinned. “What about you? Will you taste the pleasures of Tir-Na-Nog?”

Amy blushed fiercely. “I . . . I never . . .” she stuttered. She would never. But that didn’t stop her from thinking about it. 

“I could introduce you to one of my husbands,” Lexa put in helpfully.

“What!” Amy exclaimed. “Your husbands? You’d just line them up and say take one?”

“Of course, they’re the best.” 

Amy just stared at her in shock. Lexa laughed. “I’m just teasing. It’s okay. It will be okay with all of them.” She waved at the back of the truck. “My tribe is lot like me. We talk a lot, but it’s mostly talk. No one will push it. If the boys want to, they will be welcomed. If not, that’s okay. Just as long as nobody wigs out.”

Amy could only hope that no one would wig out.

Chapter 8

TIR-NA-NOG

It was dusk when they arrived. They had spent most of the afternoon on well-established roads in an increasingly dense forest. About a half-mile before they reached the community, they turned onto a gravel road that looked in good repair. Another turn into a long drive, and Amy got her first glimpse of the community.

Straight ahead of them was a vast metal building that could only be the workshop Lexa had described. To her left was a long earthen building that was the community hall, and to her right, a large network of gardens. In the center of the garden area was a low, stone building with ivy creeping up its side. Lexa made straight for it. Behind, and back in the woods, Amy glimpsed a few of the sprawling earthen houses that Lexa had described so well.

As the boys piled out of the back of the truck, two men approached. They were almost a matching set; both were tall, blond, and broad. They wore their long hair tied back and tunics with leggings. 

Swords hung at their sides. Lexa had carefully explained at lunch that they were ceremonial weapons only. She didn’t want anyone to get nervous or freak over them.

The two men bowed low. “I am Michael,” one of them said, “and this is Lorn. We are captains of the guard for Tir-Na-Nog.”

“We bid you welcome and well met,” the one introduced as Lorn said. “We offer you the hospitality of our community.”

“I am Luke Zachary of Freedom Ranch,” Luke said, pushing past Amy. “And we gladly accept your hospitality.” Patrick was glaring at the sword, as though he was unsure about accepting any hospitality, but he said nothing.

“A feast has been made ready, as have accommodations,” Michael told them.

Patrick brightened, and Mark muttered, “That’s more like it.”

“But first, you are all weary and dirty. Come,” Michael finished. They followed him to the low stone building. Three more people awaited them there, one man and two women.

The two women were a stark contrast. One was tall, dark haired, and mousy. She stood silently and patiently. The other was easily two heads shorter than Amy. She had bright blond hair and a round smiling face. She practically bounced with impatience. The man was young, with dark hair and a slender build.

“Lexa!” the blond squealed as the expedition walked up. She rushed forward, sweeping Lexa into a fierce bear hug.

“Hi, Daisy,” Lexa said sarcastically. She didn’t look upset, however, and returned the hug. Amy couldn’t help but notice the smirk on Patrick’s face.
If he only knew the half of it
, she thought.

“Hospitality,” Michael said gesturing them inside. It was a rectangular building. The entryway contained a small alcove with hooks on the walls and low benches. The entryway opened into a shower room with low showers and small wooden stools. On the far side of the building, steam curled up from a large pool of water.

Amy heard a gasp and turned back to see Lexa casually stripping off her clothes. She hung her jumper on one of the hooks and turned to them. The men gaped at her slender naked body.

“Well, come on,” Lexa said. “Don’t you want to clean up for the feast?”

They all stared at her, silent. No one had any clue what to say. Daisy looked concerned. “Is something wrong?” she asked.

“Well,” Luke said, licking his dry lips and not taking his eyes off Lexa. “Where we come from, we usually bathe alone.”

“You do?” Daisy asked. “Who scrubs your back?”

Lexa said, “Oh, I get it. More of that old-fashioned stuff. No problem. Girls first and then the boys. Acceptable?”

They nodded. “We’ll wait outside,” Luke said, averting his eyes. Kurt bolted for the door, followed by Luke. The others moved more slowly, Shawn trailing at the end.

Amy hesitated. Misreading her reluctance, Lexa said, “Right, you too.” The young man scampered out as well. Michael and Lorn bowed and made a more dignified exit.

Amy undressed slowly. She had no choice really. These people were doing their best to accommodate them as guests. They simply didn’t understand that at the ranch they bathed alone—as in completely alone.

Daisy and the other woman shed their simple robes as casually as Lexa had her coveralls. Lexa sat at one of the stools and began to adjust the knobs, feeling the water for temperature. The mousy woman, whose name Amy learned was Willowshade, meanwhile filled a bucket with soapy water. Taking a long brush, she began to scrub Lexa’s back while Lexa washed her own front.

Daisy stood by Amy, making small talk while Amy undressed and followed her to the showers. “I’m so glad to have our Lexa back,” she said. “She does take risks, that one. She was told about you guys mostly as a precaution. They didn’t want her running into you unaware. I told Lady Sapphire that was the last thing to do. Telling Lexa was clearly inviting her to go take a look. And of course, she did. Oh well, she seems to have had the right of it anyway. You don’t seem dangerous.”

Amy sat on the stool, naked and feeling very uncomfortable. She wasn’t quite sure how to respond.
Are we dangerous?

Despite her discomfort, the warm water felt good. Daisy’s scrubbing massaged the tension from her back, and she relaxed.

“First rinse done. Into the pool with you,” Daisy declared. Amy went to the pool. Lexa and Willowshade were already neck deep in water, talking.

There was a stone stairway leading into the water. The water was almost painfully hot as Amy walked down into it. Standing at the bottom of the stairs, she was about chest deep. A stone ledge ran along the inside of the pool, so that you could sit down and be almost completely submerged.

Amy let out a long sigh of contentment as she sat down beside Lexa. As her body adjusted to the temperature, she felt herself relax even more. “I think someone likes our idea of bathing.” Lexa giggled.

“I’ve never been covered by so much warm water,” she said. She thought of the old metal tub back home. Pouring kettle after kettle of boiling water in, you were inevitably either too hot or too cold. “How do you do it?” she asked.

“Back before the collapse, we had a company come in and drill a geothermal well,” Willowshade explained. “This bath is actually the cooling tank for the generator. We produce most of our own electricity that way. The generator is in another building behind this. The steam comes up and turns the generator. The water is held in a holding tank until it is below scalding and then pumped in here. As it cools, it flows down an outlet tube at the bottom and back down the well.”

“Ingenious,” Amy told her. She leaned her body against the stone side and listened while the women talked, telling Lexa news of people Amy didn’t know. The three women’s casualness was such that she almost felt embarrassed of her embarrassment.

“So how’s my favorite man?” Lexa asked.

“Oh, that one’s a handful, let me tell you,” Daisy responded. “Just this morning, he bonked his poor little noggin but good.”

“Oh no,” Lexa exclaimed. “How?”

Daisy laughed. “Climbing the kitchen shelves to get at the cookie jar again. He’s not hurt. Serves the wee devil right.”

“That’s my Ewan. He’ll be climbing wind generators with his old woman before he’s five.”

“He will not!”

Lexa shrugged. “Okay, six then.”

“No time for a leisurely soak, girls,” Willowshade warned. “Out you go, and we’ll do a deep scrub this time.”

Daisy washed Amy’s hair for her. Modesty gone for the moment, she gloried in the deep scalp massage. She broke into giggles suddenly.

“Not ticklish?” Daisy asked.

“No, I was just thinking what our minister, Reverend Posch, would think of this.” 

“You’ve got a reverend?” Daisy sounded surprised.

“Sure, don’t you?”

“Pagans believe everyone must make their own spiritual connection to the divine. We don’t trust reverends or priests, or anyone who claims to know what the gods want for you. Nor do we trust dogmatic faiths that claim it’s all written down in some book somewhere. We never went for that, not even back before the collapse,” Willowshade told her. “It’s just that since then, organized religion has been kind of scarce. I can’t think of a tribe or village anywhere near about that has a reverend.”

“So what would your reverend say?” Daisy asked.

“He’d say it was awfully sinful,” Amy said.

“It’s a sin to be clean?” 

“No, no, clean is good,” Amy answered, “It’s the whole . . .” she gestured around her, “. . . the immodesty.”

“What immodesty?” Daisy asked, “I’m not immodest.”

“That’s the whole point,” Lexa told her. “You’re supposed to be.” To Amy she added, “She doesn’t get out much. It’s like the villagers I always tell you about. They think it’s proper to be embarrassed about showing too much skin.”

“Silly way to live, if you ask me,” Daisy declared.

“That’s why the men reacted the way they did,” Willowshade explained. “We haven’t had to deal with outsiders in so long, at least not with outsiders that don’t already know our ways, that we didn’t think about it.” Then she giggled.